Aeroplane-propelling device.



N. L. HYATT & H. LLOYD.

AEROPLANE PROPELLING DEVICE.

APPLICATION FILED 050.10.1911.

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AEROPLANE-PROPELLING DEVICE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 1 1919.

Application filed December 10, 1917. Serial No. 206,526.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, NELSON L. HYATT and HARVEY LLOYD, citizens of Canada, and residents of Dresden, in the Province of Ontario and Dominion of Canada, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in .Aeroplane-Propellin Devices, of

which the following is a speci cation.

This invention relates to aeroplane propelling devices and more particularly to a I device for facilitating vertical ascension of an aeroplane.

The primary object of this invention is to provide a plurality of supplementary propellers arranged above the aeroplane and adapted to be operated by the aeroplane motor whereby the aeroplane may ascend vertically before the driving or traction propeller is brought into operation.

.The invention also aims atthe provision of a device that may be attached to an.

aeroplane for facilitating ascension of the aeroplane while the same is also moving for-v wardly, the construction being such as to permit simultaneous operation of the driving or traction propellers with the supplementary propellers which perform the work of elevatlng the aeroplane.

A further object of the invention is to provide a plurality of supplemental propellers for causlng vertical ascension of the aeroplane and adapted to rotate in different directions whereby the equilibrium' is maintained during ascension thereoff Other objects of the invention will be apparent from a consideration of the follow-- ing detailed description and a consideration of the accompanying drawings, WlIGI'GIII is illustrated the preferred formof our invention and in which: Figure 1 is a front elevation of an aeroplane showing the invention applied thereto.

Fig. 2 is a top. plan. Fig. 3 is an enlarged sectional view of the attachment taken substantiallypn the line 3 3- of Fig.2. v

Fig. 4 is a fragmentary section taken on the line 44 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary horizontal sec- .tion taken substantially on the line 5.-5 of Fig. 3. p

The aeroplane includes the upper plane 1 and the lower plane 2 and the car 3 within which the motor is mounted. Attached to the car 3 is a base flange fhaving a plurality of angularly disposed brace arms 5 radiating therefrom and provided with a central vertically extending standard'in the form of a sleeve 6. A central power shaft 7 is arranged within the sleeve and extends centrally through the base flange 4 and is provided at its lower end-with a gear or sprocket 8 having a suitable connection with the motor whereby the shaft 7 may be driven when the motor is in operation. At the top end of the standard 6 is a gear housing 9 and the upper end of the shaft 7 carries a beveled gear 10, while a plurality of beveled gears 11 are arranged within the housing and mesh with the gear at diametrically opposite points. Connected to the ear housing'9 is a plurality of sleeves 12 r iating from the housing and embracing shafts 13 each of which proj ectsinto the gear hous-' ing 9 and carries one of the beveled gears 11 at its inn'er end. Since all of the gears 11 are in mesh with the beveled gear 10, all of the shafts 13 will rotate in the same direction when the shaft 7 is driven. the outer end of the braces 5, we have provided bearings 14 which receive the outer ends of the sleeve 13 and have journaled Y therein the outer ends of the shaft 12, the

the drawing. The other two propellers, however, are adapted to rotate in the opposite direction and therefore are geared, as shown in Fig. 4 of the drawing. In this instance, the gear 15 mounted upon one of the shafts 13, is in mesh with the gears 17 at a pointdiametrically opposite from the point with which the gears 15 mesh with the gears 17 for driving the propellers '19. This arrangement of the gears causes the propellers to rotate 1n a direction 'tion as indicated by the arrows in Fig. 2 of the aeroplane during ascension.

In order that the aeroplane will not tilt forwardly or rearwardly during ascension,

we attach the base flange 4: at a point slightly rearwardly of the longitudinal center line of the planes 1 and 2, as shown to advantage in Fig. 2 of the drawing, and it will be obvious that this flange 4: may be attached to the car at a point that will cause the aeroplane to be held in a horizontal plane when the aeroplane is ascending, this point of connection being difl'erent with different types and makes of aeroplanes. The upper plane 2 has the brace arms '5 extended therethrough so. that the propellers disposed above the upper plane and the length of these brace arms and the lengthof the central standard 6 may'vary according to the distance that it is necessary for the propellers 19 and 20 to be disposed above the plane 1. The shaft 7 may be connected directly to the motor so that'it will operate when the motor is operated to rotate the driving propeller B and a suitable clutch device may be provided to disconnect 3 the shafts 7 from the motor when the aeroplane reaches the desired height. It will be understood, however, that it is not essential that the propeller B be still when the ascending propellers are rotating, as it will be obvious that the aeroplane may be moving forwardly while it is also ascending. The ascension, however, with the use of these propellers, will be greatly facilitated 1 and thelong starting runs now necessary ,bef0re ascending will be unnecessary.

From the foregoing, it will be observed that a very simple and durable aeroplane elevating device has been provided, the details of which embody the preferred form. 4 We desire to be understood, however, that slight changes may be made in the details of construction without departing from the propellers of the pairs upon each side of,

the longitudinal axis of the aeroplane in opposite directions to maintain lateral stability of the aeroplane and impart an ascensional efl'ort thereto. I

'2. The combination with an aeroplane embodying a fuselage, a motor and aerofoils, of a base flange attached to the uppersurface of the fuselage, a tubular standard supported by said base flange, a gear hous ing mounted upon the upper end of said tubular standards, a plurality of shafts radiating from said gear housing, a plurality of angularly'disposed braces formed upon said base flange and having bearings at their outer upper ends for the outer ends of said radiating shaft, said shaft being positioned above the uppermost aerofoil, a helicopter propeller arranged near the outer end of each shaft and supported by said angular braces, means forxrotating said propellers from said shaft, means for rotating said shaft from said motor, said propeller rotating means arranged to rotate the diametrically opposed pairs of propellers in the same direction, and .the propellers of the pairs upon each side of the longitudinal axis of the aeroplane in opposite direction to maintain lateral stability of the aeroplane and impart an ascensional eflort thereto.

NELSON LESLIE I-IYATT. HARVEY LLOYD. 

